Citizensinformation.ie uses cookies. Some cookies may
have been set already. To find out more about our use of
cookies you can visit our privacy and cookies statement. By browsing
this website, you agree to our use of cookies.

Jobseeker's Benefit

Information

Jobseeker's Benefit is a weekly payment from the Department of Social
Protection (DSP) to people who are out of work and are covered by social
insurance (PRSI). If you don't qualify for Jobseeker's Benefit you may
qualify for Jobseeker's
Allowance.

If you are getting JB you can use a new Benefit
of Work Ready Reckoner from the Department of Social Protection to help you
assess out the financial consequences of taking up full-time work. The Reckoner
works out the total amount you would receive on taking up full-time work
(including any Family Income Supplement) and compares this to your jobseeker's
payment (including Rent Supplement).

Jobseeker's Benefit and work

To get Jobseeker's Benefit you must be unemployed or have lost at least one
day's employment and as a result be unemployed for at least 4 days out of 7
days. You may continue to get Jobseeker's Benefit if you can only find
part-time or casual work.

Where a Jobseeker's Benefit recipient is working for part of a week, their
entitlement will be based on a 5-day payment week. This means that for each day
that a person is employed, 1/5th of the normal rate of Jobseeker's Benefit is
deducted. If they get part-time work for 2 days, they will get 3/5ths of the
normal Jobseeker's Benefit for that week and if they get part-time work for 3
days they will get 2/5ths of the normal rate of Jobseeker’s Benefit for the
week. You must still be unemployed for at least 4 days out of 7 to claim
Jobseeker's Benefit. You can read FAQS
about these changes.

Loss of employment

You must have suffered a substantial loss of employment in any period of 7
consecutive days to be eligible for Jobseeker's Benefit (casual workers and
retained firefighters with no other employment are exempt from this rule). This
means that you must have lost at least one day's employment and as a result of
this loss be unemployed for at least 4 days out of 7. Your earnings must also
have been reduced because of the loss of employment.

Social insurance (PRSI) contributions

To qualify for Jobseeker's Benefit, you must pay Class A, H or P PRSI
contributions. Class A is the one paid by most private sector employees. Class
H is paid by soldiers, reservists and temporary army nurses, who do not qualify
for Jobseeker's Benefit until they have left the army. To qualify you need:

At least 104 weeks PRSI paid since you first started work

And

39 weeks PRSI paid or credited in the relevant tax year (a minimum of 13
weeks must be paid contributions*)

Or

26 weeks PRSI paid in the relevant tax year and 26 weeks PRSI paid in the
tax year immediately before the relevant tax year.

*If you do not have 13 paid contributions in the relevant
tax year, you must have paid 13 contributions in any of the following years:

The 2 tax years before the relevant tax year

The last complete tax year

The current tax year.

The relevant tax year is the second last complete tax year before the year
in which your claim is made. So, for claims made in 2015, the relevant tax year
is 2013.

There are a number of circumstances in which you can be awarded credited
contributions. For example, pre-entry credits are given when you start
employment for the first time in your working life. However, you can only
qualify for Jobseeker's Benefit when you have actually paid 104 contributions.
Credits are also awarded while you are getting certain social welfare payments,
including Jobseeker's Benefit (provided it is for 6 days), Illness Benefit
and, in some cases, Jobseeker's Allowance.

Contributions you have paid in other member
states of the EU/EEA will be added to your Irish contributions. If you are
applying for Jobseeker's Benefit and need the contributions paid in another
EU/EEA country to help you qualify, then your last contribution must have been
in Ireland.

Disqualification

You may be disqualified from getting Jobseeker's Benefit for 9 weeks if
you:

Left work voluntarily and without a reasonable cause

Lost your job through misconduct

Refused an offer of suitable alternative employment or suitable training
- if you have been on a penalty rate of JB for at least 21 days

Are aged under 55 and get a redundancy payment of more than €50,000.
The exact length of your disqualification (up to 9 weeks) will depend on
the amount of redundancy payment you received.

Redundancy

If you are aged under 55 and get a redundancy payment of more than €50,000
you are disqualified from claiming Jobseeker's Benefit. The table below shows
how long you may be disqualified for. The length of the disqualification is at
the discretion of the deciding officer (who can take your circumstances into
account). Any period of disqualification is subtracted from your total
Jobseeker's Benefit entitlement. So if you are disqualified for 3 weeks (which
is 18 days payment) your JB claim starts on day 19. Note that people who take
voluntary redundancy and do not get a redundancy payment of over €50,000 can
claim jobseeker's payments immediately.

Amount of redundancy
payment

Period of
disqualification

€50,000.01 - €55,000

1 week

€55,000.01 - €60,000

2 weeks

€60,000.01 - €65,000

3 weeks

€65,000.01 - €70,000

4 weeks

€70,000.01 - €75,000

5 weeks

€75,000.01 - €80,000

6 weeks

€80,000.01 - €85,000

7 weeks

€85,000.01 - €90,000

8 weeks

€90,000.01 and over

9 weeks

Duration of Jobseeker's Benefit

The duration of Jobseeker's Benefit reduced by 3 months with effect
from 3 April 2013. For people with 260 or more PRSI contributions
paid, it reduced from 12 months (312 days) to 9 months (234 days). For people
with fewer than 260 PRSI contributions paid, it reduced from 9 months (234
days) to 6 months (156 days).

Re-qualifying for Jobseeker's Benefit

You have paid 13 PRSI contributions for at least 13 weeks (these
contributions can be counted only after you have claimed at least 156 days
(6 months) of JB)

However if you are working and claiming JB (systematic short-time workers
and part-time workers) you cannot simply continue your JB claim when it is
exhausted since you must have suffered a substantial loss of employment to
re-qualify for JB, (unless you are a casual worker).

If you have lost your job you will have suffered a substantial loss of
employment. If you are a part-time or systematic short-time worker DSP will
look at your pattern of employment over the last 13 weeks or another
representative period to find out whether you have suffered a substantial loss
of employment.

For example, if you are getting JB and working 3 days each week as a
systematic short-time worker or a part-time worker and your employment pattern
has not changed during the course of your JB claim, you will not have suffered
a substantial loss of employment and will not re-qualify for Jobseeker’s
Benefit when you exhaust your claim. However, if your JB claim ends and your 3
day week working week is then reduced to a 2 day week, you will have suffered a
substantial loss of employment and may re-qualify for Jobseeker’s Benefit.

Linking claims

If you claim JB for a period, sign off and then claim JB again within 26
weeks your claim may be linked to the earlier claim. This means that
your claim is not treated as a new claim and:

You do not have to wait for 3 days before getting your payment

The cumulative total of days from the previous claim is continued (so,
for example, if you have used up 100 days of your total JB entitlement of
234 days you have 134 days remaining on your claim)

The rate of JB is the same rate payable as on the previous claim, unless
there has been a budgetary increase or change in family circumstances (such
as a new child dependant).

If your JB claim does not link to a previous claim it is treated as a new
claim. You must wait for 3 days before getting a payment and your cumulative
total of days starts from the first day of payment.

You can read more about linking
claims including information on linking to a different scheme (such as
Illness Benefit) and linking to an earlier JB claim through a different scheme
or period spent in training or on an employment scheme.

Short-term employment or training

The Department of Social Protection operates a fast-tracking system for
people who sign off to take up work for a short period (up to 8 weeks) or to go
on a short training course (up to 8 weeks). This ensures that your payment is
re-instated without delay. It is important that you inform your Intreo centre
or local social welfare office in advance that you are taking up work or
training. Your Rent
Supplement or Mortgage
Interest Supplement claim can also be suspended for up to 8 weeks.

Rates

Jobseeker's Benefit is not paid for the first 3 days you are unemployed (the
first 3 days are any 3 days, not necessarily consecutive, in a period of 7
consecutive days).

If you are unemployed for a second time within 26 weeks of your last JB
payment your application for Jobseeker's Benefit is not treated as a new claim
and you do not have another 3 days of non-payment. See
'Linking claims' above.

Weekly Jobseeker's Benefit payment in 2015

Average weekly earnings

Personal rate

Increase for a qualified
adult

Increase for a qualified child

Less than €150

€84.50

€80.90

€29.80

€150 - €219.99

€121.40

€220 - €299.99

€147.30

€300 or more

€188

€124.80

You get a personal rate and may get an increase for an adult
dependant and child
dependant (see below). Your average weekly earnings do not affect the
amount you get for a child dependent.

Average weekly earnings

Jobseeker's Benefit rates are graduated according to your earnings in the
relevant tax year. Your average weekly earnings are your gross yearly earnings
from employment divided by the number of paid A, H or P contributions in the
relevant tax year.

The relevant tax year is 2 years before the year of your claim. For example,
if you claim Jobseeker's Benefit in 2015 the relevant tax year is 2013. If you
only qualify for a reduced JB payment, it may of greater benefit for you to
claim Jobseeker's
Allowance instead of Jobseeker's Benefit.

Penalty rates

Your payment can be reduced if you refuse or fail to attend meetings
requested by the Department or if you refuse or fail to participate in an
appropriate employment support scheme, work experience or training. You can
find out about sanctions for not
meeting the conditions of your jobseeker's payment. Penalty rates do not
apply to people aged over 62 from 1 January 2014.

Claiming for dependants with Jobseeker's Benefit

If your spouse, civil partner or cohabitant is dependent on you or is on a
low income you may be able to claim an increase in your payment for him or her.
This increase is called an Increase for a Qualified Adult (IQA). If your adult
dependant is earning €100 or less you will get the maximum IQA. If he or she
is earning between €100 and €310 you will get a reduced rate of IQA. If
your adult dependant is earning more than €310 you will not get an increase
in your Jobseeker’s Benefit for your adult dependant.

You will also need certain
documents when you apply for Jobseeker's Benefit. If you do not have these
documents to hand, you should apply anyway and supply them later. You should
remember that delay in applying for Jobseeker's Benefit may
mean that you lose out on your full entitlements.

Social Welfare Appeals Office

Further information

Half-rate Jobseeker's Benefit with another social welfare payment

People getting a Widow's, Widower's or Surviving Civil Partner's Pension, a
One-Parent Family Payment or a deserted wives payment and who met all the
conditions for Jobseeker's Benefit, were entitled to half the normal rate of
Jobseeker's Benefit. These half-rate payments were discontinued from
February 2012.

Changes to duration of Jobseeker's Benefit

The duration of Jobseeker's Benefit reduced by 3 months with effect
from 3 April 2013. For people with 260 or more PRSI contributions
paid, it reduced from 12 months (312 days) to 9 months (234 days). For people
with fewer than 260 PRSI contributions paid, it reduced from 9 months (234
days) to 6 months (156 days). Claimants getting Jobseeker's Benefit for 6
months or more on 3 April 2013 (or 3 months for people with fewer than 260
contributions) were not affected (see table below).

Related Documents

Jobseeker's Benefit and workYou may be able to work and get Jobseeker's Benefit. This document explains how work affects your Jobseeker's Benefit.

Pregnancy and social welfare paymentsPregnancy may affect your social welfare payment. You may be entitled to a different payment or an increase in your current payment. Find out more here.

Contact Us

If you have a question relating to this topic you can contact the Citizens Information Phone Service on 0761 07 4000 (Monday to Friday, 9am to 8pm) or you can visit your local Citizens Information Centre.